Army Reserve looks to future

On Tuesday, we ask the nation to join us in recognizing the Army Reserve’s 105th anniversary and the strong kindred spirit that binds our nearly 201,000 soldiers to our neighbors and communities across the country and around the world.

Generations of reserve soldiers have followed in the footsteps of the men and women before them who embraced our nation’s call to duty by volunteering to serve in the dual role of “citizen-soldier.” The Army Reserve’s track record as a lifesaving, life-sustaining force for the Army and the nation is extensive and distinguished, providing critical combat and service support to active-component soldiers over half a century, from the Vietnam War through Operation Enduring Freedom and every operation in between.

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Prior to that, our cavalry and infantry divisions deployed to theaters of war in Europe and the Pacific. We are now emerging from 11 years of war as an integral, proven and needed command within the U.S. military, leveraging unique capabilities in service to America.

In 1908, Congress created the Medical Reserve Corps, the official predecessor of today’s U.S. Army Reserve. Subsequently, using its constitutional authority to “raise and support armies” through the National Defense Act of 1916 and the sweeping amendment of that law in the National Defense Act of 1920, the federal government created the Organized Reserve Corps. This organization would last into the 1950s, providing a peacetime pool of trained Army Reserve personnel for use in war — a force that continues to serve the nation with distinction today.

Over the years, our nation’s “virtual” borders have expanded considerably. Our global footprint is extensive and requires a military force able to mobilize at a moment’s notice; protect and defend our interests anywhere around the world; then head home to train, prepare and deploy to support humanitarian, disaster response and contingency operations wherever and whenever the Army and the nation needs us. The Army Reserve is that military force.

When the Army deploys, the Army Reserve is right alongside it. We provide a complementary force of combat service and support personnel organized into streamlined and deployable units. We are a complementary force ready to sustain any mission, anywhere. Our teammates are essential to the Army’s ability to support the Joint Force — in peacetime operations and during combat.